10-30 Adapter Sold Out

[diamond.g]

I am not an electrician, but I am pretty sure that neutral should only be connected to ground in one place: in the main distribution panel. Connecting these two in your adapter could cause problems.

Best bet is to wait for Tesla to make the 10-30 UMC adapter available again. Tesla has had periods in the past where the 10-30 and other adapters for the old UMC were out of stock and removed from their website, but they came back and I was able to order mine online. Back then it took several months, but it sounds like it will only be a few week wait now.

If someone does make their own 10-30 to 14-30 adapter, I suggest connecting it like I did for the 10-50 to 14-50 adapter that I made. I just connected the neutral from the 10-50 to the ground pin of the 14-50. The neutral pin of the 14-50 is not connected to anything. This works great for charging Teslas or other EVs, but would be a disaster if someone ever plugged a motor home into it, since RVs require the neutral to be connected. Without this connection, 120 V RV appliances get supplied with 240 V. Label your homemade adapter "EV charging only!"

GSP

Me either, I may have misquoted what to do with the neutral pin. Thanks for giving a more detail guide.

 

[efraimbart]

This makes no sense.

No competent electrician should have been willing to install a brand new 10-30 receptacle. It has no ground and has been against code for a LONG time (existing receptacles are allowed to stay and I suspect you can replace a defective receptacle which is why they still sell them).

Regardless, I don't understand what kind of wire the electrician would have run that DID NOT include a ground wire. Presumably they would have run 10 AWG three conductor (hot, hot, neutral), but every kind of wire I could think of (that they would have likely used) ALSO has a ground wire in it. So switching to a 14-30 should be a trivial job to just swap the receptacle.

If you can do so safely, take the cover off your electrical panel and post pictures here - specifically detailed pictures on the wiring coming into the panel for that new 30a circuit. If it has four wires (like it is NM-B Romex) then it should be trivial to switch over to a 14-30.

Also, I am shocked that during the middle of the Model 3 rollout they would discontinue that adapter. Are you 100% positive they were talking about the right part #? It is still on their web site (just listed as out of stock). They have been changing the revision # on a lot of their adapters, so perhaps someone checked the stock level on the old SKU (not knowing a new one had replaced it)?

-Eric

I'm pretty sure the wire was Phase A, Phase B, and Neutral (maybe with ground being repurposed as one of the phases?)

I'm not 100% certain about anything.

 

[efraimbart]

I just received an email response from Tesla Shop:

“Our expected replenishment is overdue, but the target date for shipping is in the next couple of weeks”.

That makes me feel better since this is still a very common receptacle.

Well that's good news!

 

[jdcollins5]

I'm pretty sure the wire was Phase A, Phase B, and Neutral (maybe with ground being repurposed as one of the phases?)

I'm not 100% certain about anything.

The 10-30 receptacle is a 3-wire; Phase 1, Phase 2 and ground. It does not have the neutral.

The 14-30 is a 4-wire; Phase 1, Phase 2, Neutral and ground.

 

[eprosenx]

The 10-30 receptacle is a 3-wire; Phase 1, Phase 2 and ground. It does not have the neutral.

The 14-30 is a 4-wire; Phase 1, Phase 2, Neutral and ground.

This is incorrect. 10-30 has Phase 1, Phase 2, and NEUTRAL not ground.

NEMA connector - Wikipedia

You are *not* allowed to use a ground wire in romex as a neutral. So if this was done it was done WRONG and they need to come back and re-do their work. The ground wire is often lower gauge wire and is not sufficiently insulated.

 

[FourOhFour]

The 10-30 receptacle is a 3-wire; Phase 1, Phase 2 and ground. It does not have the neutral.

You're thinking of 6-30. 10-30 is hot, hot, neutral. No ground, which is why it's considered obsolete.

 

[FlatSix911]

This will fix the issue for the OP... NEMA 10-30 Dryer Outlet Adapter for Tesla Model S and X Gen 1, 15 ft.

 

[eprosenx]

This will fix the issue for the OP... NEMA 10-30 Dryer Outlet Adapter for Tesla Model S and X Gen 1, 15 ft.

That is for the Gen 1 UMC. I suspect the OP has a Gen 2 since this is the Model 3 forum.

 

[jdcollins5]

This is incorrect. 10-30 has Phase 1, Phase 2, and NEUTRAL not ground.

NEMA connector - Wikipedia

You are *not* allowed to use a ground wire in romex as a neutral. So if this was done it was done WRONG and they need to come back and re-do their work. The ground wire is often lower gauge wire and is not sufficiently insulated.

A 10-30 is a 3-wire receptacle with hot, hot, and ground. You must have ground for safety purposes. The neutral cannot be used for a safety ground. You use 10/2 with ground Romex. This is is for 240V dryers without any 120V load.

The 14-30 is a 4-wire receptacle with hot, hot, neutral and ground. You use 10/3 with ground Romex.

I do not know where you guys are getting your information.

 

[jdcollins5]

You're thinking of 6-30. 10-30 is hot, hot, neutral. No ground, which is why it's considered obsolete.

I am glad you are not wiring anything on my property!

 

[FlatSix911]

That is for the Gen 1 UMC. I suspect the OP has a Gen 2 since this is the Model 3 forum.

If Gen 2 is needed... problem solved...
NEMA 10-30 Adapter for Tesla Model S/X/3 Gen 2

 

[CCIE]

A 10-30 is a 3-wire receptacle with hot, hot, and ground. You must have ground for safety purposes. The neutral cannot be used for a safety ground. You use 10/2 with ground Romex. This is is for 240V dryers without any 120V load.

The 14-30 is a 4-wire receptacle with hot, hot, neutral and ground. You use 10/3 with ground Romex.

I do not know where you guys are getting your information.

No, NEMA 10-30 outlets are hot-hot-neutral. They do not provide a dedicated ground connection since that was not a requirement in the National Electric Code (NEC) when they were introduced. That also why the NEMA 10-series is obsolete and no longer legal for new installs.

Any new install should be using 14-30 or 14-50 outlets, which are hot-hot-neutral-ground. NEMA 6-series is also fine since it is hot-hot-ground.

 

[eprosenx]

A 10-30 is a 3-wire receptacle with hot, hot, and ground. You must have ground for safety purposes. The neutral cannot be used for a safety ground. You use 10/2 with ground Romex. This is is for 240V dryers without any 120V load.

The 14-30 is a 4-wire receptacle with hot, hot, neutral and ground. You use 10/3 with ground Romex.

I do not know where you guys are getting your information.

I don’t know any more polite way to say this, but please go look at the Wikipedia chart I linked to in the above post and find the 10-30 receptacle. Note the color coding. It shows the 10-30 as having two hots and a neutral.

As several other posters have said now, the *reason* it is obsolete and no longer allowed is because it does not have a ground pin. Super sketch.

 

[FourOhFour]

A 10-30 is a 3-wire receptacle with hot, hot, and ground. You must have ground for safety purposes. The neutral cannot be used for a safety ground. You use 10/2 with ground Romex. This is is for 240V dryers without any 120V load.

The 14-30 is a 4-wire receptacle with hot, hot, neutral and ground. You use 10/3 with ground Romex.

I do not know where you guys are getting your information.

Let's start with Wikipedia:

NEMA 10 connectors are a now deprecated type that had formerly been popular in the United States for use with high-wattage electric clothes dryers and kitchen ranges; NEMA 14-30R and -50R connectors are now generally used for these applications. NEMA 10s are classified as 125/250 V non-grounding (hot-hot-neutral), and were designed to be used in a manner that indirectly grounds the appliance frame, though not in a manner consistent with most modern practice. The older practice was common before the requirement of a separate safety ground was incorporated in the National Electrical Code.

Anyway, tell me, what's the difference between a 6-30 and a 10-30?

 

[jdcollins5]

No, NEMA 10-30 outlets are hot-hot-neutral. They do not provide a dedicated ground connection since that was not a requirement in the National Electric Code (NEC) when they were introduced. That also why the NEMA 10-series is obsolete and no longer legal for new installs.

Any new install should be using 14-30 or 14-50 outlets, which are hot-hot-neutral-ground. NEMA 6-series is also fine since it is hot-hot-ground.

I don’t know any more polite way to say this, but please go look at the Wikipedia chart I linked to in the above post and find the 10-30 receptacle. Note the color coding. It shows the 10-30 as having two hots and a neutral.

As several other posters have said now, the *reason* it is obsolete and no longer allowed is because it does not have a ground pin. Super sketch.

Let's start with Wikipedia:


Anyway, tell me, what's the difference between a 6-30 and a 10-30?

My bad! Brain fart! You guys are right; hot, hot and neutral. I checked my electrical panel to verify.

I just had it on my brain that all receptacles are required to have a safety ground. Until @CCI reminded me that the 10-30 pre-dated the NEC requirement that all electrical appliances must have safety grounds.

I apologize for my confusion! I must have had some of Elon’s weed

 

[FlatSix911]

My bad! Brain fart! You guys are right; hot, hot and neutral. I checked my electrical panel to verify.

I just had it on my brain that all receptacles are required to have a safety ground. Until @CCI reminded me that the 10-30 pre-dated the NEC requirement that all electrical appliances must have safety grounds.

I apologize for my confusion! I must have had some of Elon’s weed

For those who follow Elon... High-lights from Elon Musk’s interview with Joe Rogan

 

[rhumbliner]

I solved the problem this way: CarCharging.us

 

[jdcollins5]

Well I completed the installation of my 14-50 receptacle in my detached garage today. I just used a 40A breaker since the Mobile Connector is limited to 32A. 30 mph will satisfy all of my charging needs.

Now I am ready for my car to be delivered the end of the month.

 

[eprosenx]

Well I completed the installation of my 14-50 receptacle in my detached garage today. I just used a 40A breaker since the Mobile Connector is limited to 32A. 30 mph will satisfy all of my charging needs.

Now I am ready for my car to be delivered the end of the month.

What ampacity wire did you use? (what type and what gauge)

If it is sufficient for 50a then there is no reason not to use a 50a breaker (the load calculations are still the same since the UMC is only rated to 32a either way).

Typically I don't recommend installing only 40a circuits unless you are trying to use existing wire. If installing new, I think 50a capable is the way to roll.

 

[jdcollins5]

What ampacity wire did you use? (what type and what gauge)

If it is sufficient for 50a then there is no reason not to use a 50a breaker (the load calculations are still the same since the UMC is only rated to 32a either way).

Typically I don't recommend installing only 40a circuits unless you are trying to use existing wire. If installing new, I think 50a capable is the way to roll.

I used #8 wire because it was available. I have conduit on both ends going in the attic and the run is only about 40 feet. I can always upgrade to #6 and 50A if ever needed in the future.